Personal Pioneer History: Notes and Queries

P E R S O N A L P I O N E E R H I S T O R Y:
NOTES AND QUERIES
N I L S W I L L I A M OLSSON
One of our newest members, Willard E. Erickson of Blue
Island, Illinois, has sent us a copy of a recently published
work on his family, T h e F a m i l y of J o h a n n e s Eriksson,
which he has edited together with his uncle. E. Axel Erick­son,
the lone survivor of a family group of four which emi­grated
to the United States from Grangärde parish i n Swe­den
in 1881. The attractively mimeographed account, con­taining
some thirty pages, is tastefully bound and even
contains some fine reproductions of family photographs and
the "flyttningsbevis" for Johannes Eriksson.
The publication, obviously a labor of love, is excellently
documented with the type of source material which places
this genealogical account high .above the usual " r u n of the
m i l l " family history.
The Ericksons, uncle and nephew, have collaborated to
gather together pertinent facts about the family, mostly
based upon oral tradition. To this has been added docu­mented
material about the family in Sweden by means of
research in the Grangärde church records and the fabulous
collection of Swedish church records, microfilmed and on
deposit in the Genealogical Library of the Church of the
Latter Day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah.
The reviewer warmly recommends the publication as a
superb example of how a family history should be written.
Queries
18. I have a question concerning my Swedish ancestor
J o h n F . S a n d e l l . He was my great grandfather, who came
from Sweden, presumably in 1852. I have no information
about where he came from in Sweden nor through which
port he entered this country. In the Census for 1860 for
Mineral Township in Bureau County, Illinois he was listed
as J. F . Sandale, living there together with his wife Anna
C a r o l i n a , daughters Mary and Josephine and sons L e v e n e
and E d w a r d , all born in Sweden and daughter Charlotte
17
and son G e o r g e , born in Illinois. L e v e n e Sandell was my
grandfather and served in the Civil War. Any information
about the family's parish of origin in Sweden would be
received with gratitude by Melvin Clare Sandell, 726 West
Second Ave., Mesa, Arizona.
—0O0—
A n s w e r s t o Queries
Answer to Query 11 (April, 1959)
There were actually four brothers S k y t t e who emigrated
to the United States in the latter part of the Nineteenth
Century from Skåne in Sweden. They were: Bengt Gustaf
S k y t t e , who is supposed to have died in Great Falls, Mont,
in 1908; A x e l Johan Henri S k y t t e , who is said to have died
in Harrison, Idaho, in 1911; Carl Samuel Oscar S k y t t e , who
died in Spokane, Wash. June 9,1927; A r o n Emanuel S k y t t e,
who also died in Spokane, March 16, 1934.
All of the brothers changed their names to Scott. Only
one, however, left male heirs, Oscar Scott, who had two
sons, Rutger Charles Scott and William Oscar Scott. The
latter never married, but Rutger Charles Scott, who died
Aug. 25, 1949 in Vancouver, B. C , Canada, had in his mar­riage
with A m e l i a A l i c e Appleyard four sons and one
daughter. All of the four sons are married and have to­gether
six sons, guaranteeing that the name of S k y t t e or
Scott will carry on for many years.—N.W.O.
—oOo—
Partial answer to Query 12 (October, 1959)
Harald H. Theel, Harald Hjalmarsson Thiel, who often
used the pseudonym Pingleton, a Chicago editor and writer,
was born in Stockholm April 4, 1885. After taking his
college examinations in 1905, he visited France. Upon his
return he became a member of the staff of Svenska Dag­bladet
in Stockholm; came to America in 1908 and was for
a time secretary at the Swedish vice consulate in Boston,
Mass. In 1911 he came to Chicago and was engaged in the
editorial offices of Svenska Amerikanaren. He died at his
desk there on January 8, 1917. The editor of the paper,
18
O. A. Linder, wrote of him: "He was a fine cultured young
man, intensely interested in literature, and, having a good
style of writing himself, his talent was particularly discern-able
in his descriptive essays. He wrote a number of signi­ficant
articles on various topics and many narratives." He
was one of the founders of the society Strindbergarna and
appeared on the stage in some of Strindberg's minor plays
which the society presented. This information is contained
in a brief biographical sketch in Skarstedt's Pennfäktare
(Stockholm, 1930), p. 190.—E.G.J.
—0O0—
Partial answer to Query 12 (October, 1959)
[Knut] A x e l Nordquist, editor, correspondent, born in
Gävle, April 9, 1890, has been an ardent sportsman and has
won many prizes in different sport events. He began to
write for the newspapers in 1912. For many years he
worked for Dagens N y h e t e r . He also wrote for Aftonbladet,
Idrottstidningen and Socialdemokraten, all in Stockholm,
and for Finska Idrottsbladet in Helsingfors. After his ar­rival
in America he was sports correspondent for Dagens
Nyheter and in 1921 became sports editor of Nordstjernan
in New York. He also wrote for American papers: the
N e w Y o r k Times, the N e w Y o r k Sun, the B r o o k l y n Eagle
and the B r o o k l y n T i m e s . He was an honorary member of
the Swedish Football Club in Brooklyn and a delegate to
the Scandinavian American Athletic League of America.
This information is contained in Skarstedt's Pennfäktare
(Stockholm; 1930), p. 138.—E.G.J.
—oOo—
Answer to Query 15 (October, 1959)
Carl G. L o t a v e , born in Munksjö in Småland in 1872,
came to the United States in the 1890's and, since he had
received an art education in Sweden and in Paris, he be­came
in 1897, the successor to Olof Grafström in the art
department of Bethany College in Lindsborg, Kansas. The
latter part of his life was spent in New York City, where
he was particularly known as a portrait painter. He painted
19
a full length portrait of Lincoln, portraits from life of Field
Marshal Joffre in full uniform, King Albert of Belgium,
General Pershing, Premier Venizelos of Greece, Field Mar­shal
Foch and numerous others. He died in New York in
December 1924 and his ashes were deposited the following
summer in Colorado's "Hall of Fame" at the top of Pikes
Peak. A sketch of L o t a v e is found in Hildebrand and Fred­enholm,
Svenskarna i A m e r i k a (Stockholm, 1925), Vol. II,
pp. 229-230.—E.G.J.
Carl Gustafson L o t a v e studied for several years in Stock­holm
with such Swedish masters as Axel Kulle, Anders
Zorn and Richard Bergh. He was a classmate of Birger
Sandzén's. Two years of study in Paris brought L o t a v e in
contact with the great masters of the French capital. It was
Dr. Carl Swensson, President of Bethany College, who con­tacted
L o t a v e in Sweden, while traveling there in 1897,
bringing him back to Lindsborg with him. L o t a v e died in
New York, December 25, 1924. For further information see
Emory K. Lindquist, S m o k y Valley People (Lindsborg,
1953), p. 209.—Anton Peterson, McPherson, Kansas.
The Charter Flight to Sweden of the Swedish
Pioneer Historical Society is now definitely set for
July 24-September 6, 1960, according to Flight
Manager Nils William Olsson. Only that one six-weeks
tour will be conducted, the consideration of
other possibilities have been abandoned. Those who
have pre-regfsfered or indicated interest in the
flights will be notified shortly by the Flight Man­ager
about their next step. ASS inquiries about the
Flight should be addressed to the Flight Manager,
Nils William Olsson, 5715 Cromwell Drive, Wash­ington
16, D. C.
20

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P E R S O N A L P I O N E E R H I S T O R Y:
NOTES AND QUERIES
N I L S W I L L I A M OLSSON
One of our newest members, Willard E. Erickson of Blue
Island, Illinois, has sent us a copy of a recently published
work on his family, T h e F a m i l y of J o h a n n e s Eriksson,
which he has edited together with his uncle. E. Axel Erick­son,
the lone survivor of a family group of four which emi­grated
to the United States from Grangärde parish i n Swe­den
in 1881. The attractively mimeographed account, con­taining
some thirty pages, is tastefully bound and even
contains some fine reproductions of family photographs and
the "flyttningsbevis" for Johannes Eriksson.
The publication, obviously a labor of love, is excellently
documented with the type of source material which places
this genealogical account high .above the usual " r u n of the
m i l l " family history.
The Ericksons, uncle and nephew, have collaborated to
gather together pertinent facts about the family, mostly
based upon oral tradition. To this has been added docu­mented
material about the family in Sweden by means of
research in the Grangärde church records and the fabulous
collection of Swedish church records, microfilmed and on
deposit in the Genealogical Library of the Church of the
Latter Day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah.
The reviewer warmly recommends the publication as a
superb example of how a family history should be written.
Queries
18. I have a question concerning my Swedish ancestor
J o h n F . S a n d e l l . He was my great grandfather, who came
from Sweden, presumably in 1852. I have no information
about where he came from in Sweden nor through which
port he entered this country. In the Census for 1860 for
Mineral Township in Bureau County, Illinois he was listed
as J. F . Sandale, living there together with his wife Anna
C a r o l i n a , daughters Mary and Josephine and sons L e v e n e
and E d w a r d , all born in Sweden and daughter Charlotte
17
and son G e o r g e , born in Illinois. L e v e n e Sandell was my
grandfather and served in the Civil War. Any information
about the family's parish of origin in Sweden would be
received with gratitude by Melvin Clare Sandell, 726 West
Second Ave., Mesa, Arizona.
—0O0—
A n s w e r s t o Queries
Answer to Query 11 (April, 1959)
There were actually four brothers S k y t t e who emigrated
to the United States in the latter part of the Nineteenth
Century from Skåne in Sweden. They were: Bengt Gustaf
S k y t t e , who is supposed to have died in Great Falls, Mont,
in 1908; A x e l Johan Henri S k y t t e , who is said to have died
in Harrison, Idaho, in 1911; Carl Samuel Oscar S k y t t e , who
died in Spokane, Wash. June 9,1927; A r o n Emanuel S k y t t e,
who also died in Spokane, March 16, 1934.
All of the brothers changed their names to Scott. Only
one, however, left male heirs, Oscar Scott, who had two
sons, Rutger Charles Scott and William Oscar Scott. The
latter never married, but Rutger Charles Scott, who died
Aug. 25, 1949 in Vancouver, B. C , Canada, had in his mar­riage
with A m e l i a A l i c e Appleyard four sons and one
daughter. All of the four sons are married and have to­gether
six sons, guaranteeing that the name of S k y t t e or
Scott will carry on for many years.—N.W.O.
—oOo—
Partial answer to Query 12 (October, 1959)
Harald H. Theel, Harald Hjalmarsson Thiel, who often
used the pseudonym Pingleton, a Chicago editor and writer,
was born in Stockholm April 4, 1885. After taking his
college examinations in 1905, he visited France. Upon his
return he became a member of the staff of Svenska Dag­bladet
in Stockholm; came to America in 1908 and was for
a time secretary at the Swedish vice consulate in Boston,
Mass. In 1911 he came to Chicago and was engaged in the
editorial offices of Svenska Amerikanaren. He died at his
desk there on January 8, 1917. The editor of the paper,
18
O. A. Linder, wrote of him: "He was a fine cultured young
man, intensely interested in literature, and, having a good
style of writing himself, his talent was particularly discern-able
in his descriptive essays. He wrote a number of signi­ficant
articles on various topics and many narratives." He
was one of the founders of the society Strindbergarna and
appeared on the stage in some of Strindberg's minor plays
which the society presented. This information is contained
in a brief biographical sketch in Skarstedt's Pennfäktare
(Stockholm, 1930), p. 190.—E.G.J.
—0O0—
Partial answer to Query 12 (October, 1959)
[Knut] A x e l Nordquist, editor, correspondent, born in
Gävle, April 9, 1890, has been an ardent sportsman and has
won many prizes in different sport events. He began to
write for the newspapers in 1912. For many years he
worked for Dagens N y h e t e r . He also wrote for Aftonbladet,
Idrottstidningen and Socialdemokraten, all in Stockholm,
and for Finska Idrottsbladet in Helsingfors. After his ar­rival
in America he was sports correspondent for Dagens
Nyheter and in 1921 became sports editor of Nordstjernan
in New York. He also wrote for American papers: the
N e w Y o r k Times, the N e w Y o r k Sun, the B r o o k l y n Eagle
and the B r o o k l y n T i m e s . He was an honorary member of
the Swedish Football Club in Brooklyn and a delegate to
the Scandinavian American Athletic League of America.
This information is contained in Skarstedt's Pennfäktare
(Stockholm; 1930), p. 138.—E.G.J.
—oOo—
Answer to Query 15 (October, 1959)
Carl G. L o t a v e , born in Munksjö in Småland in 1872,
came to the United States in the 1890's and, since he had
received an art education in Sweden and in Paris, he be­came
in 1897, the successor to Olof Grafström in the art
department of Bethany College in Lindsborg, Kansas. The
latter part of his life was spent in New York City, where
he was particularly known as a portrait painter. He painted
19
a full length portrait of Lincoln, portraits from life of Field
Marshal Joffre in full uniform, King Albert of Belgium,
General Pershing, Premier Venizelos of Greece, Field Mar­shal
Foch and numerous others. He died in New York in
December 1924 and his ashes were deposited the following
summer in Colorado's "Hall of Fame" at the top of Pikes
Peak. A sketch of L o t a v e is found in Hildebrand and Fred­enholm,
Svenskarna i A m e r i k a (Stockholm, 1925), Vol. II,
pp. 229-230.—E.G.J.
Carl Gustafson L o t a v e studied for several years in Stock­holm
with such Swedish masters as Axel Kulle, Anders
Zorn and Richard Bergh. He was a classmate of Birger
Sandzén's. Two years of study in Paris brought L o t a v e in
contact with the great masters of the French capital. It was
Dr. Carl Swensson, President of Bethany College, who con­tacted
L o t a v e in Sweden, while traveling there in 1897,
bringing him back to Lindsborg with him. L o t a v e died in
New York, December 25, 1924. For further information see
Emory K. Lindquist, S m o k y Valley People (Lindsborg,
1953), p. 209.—Anton Peterson, McPherson, Kansas.
The Charter Flight to Sweden of the Swedish
Pioneer Historical Society is now definitely set for
July 24-September 6, 1960, according to Flight
Manager Nils William Olsson. Only that one six-weeks
tour will be conducted, the consideration of
other possibilities have been abandoned. Those who
have pre-regfsfered or indicated interest in the
flights will be notified shortly by the Flight Man­ager
about their next step. ASS inquiries about the
Flight should be addressed to the Flight Manager,
Nils William Olsson, 5715 Cromwell Drive, Wash­ington
16, D. C.
20